Toxic chemical substrate management systems and methods

ABSTRACT

Toxic chemical substrate management systems for use in a factory having a material management system are disclosed. The toxic chemical substrate management system includes at least a server, a processing unit and a database. The server is coupled to the material management system to receive toxic chemical substrate information, comprising identification to be stored in the database. The server receives an instruction, and the processing unit manages operations of the toxic chemical substrate according to the identification and the instruction. The operations include request, use, storage and return of the toxic chemical substrate. The toxic chemical substrate management system further provides interfaces to query the stock, use volume, operating amount, type of the toxic chemical substrate, and suppliers and operating region thereof.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates generally to material management, andmore particularly, to systems and methods of managing toxic chemicalsubstrates in factories.

Specific toxic chemical substrates may be used for fabricating products.For example, toxic gases which pollute the environment or damage humansmay be used in semiconductor manufacturing. The management andmonitoring of toxic chemical substrates is an important issue forproduct manufacturing and environmental protection.

In semiconductor manufacturing, for example, a foundry may have severalfactory areas. Toxic chemical substrates may be dispersed in productionlines, chemical rooms, or gas cabinets of respective factory areas, andused independently. Conventionally, toxic chemical substrates aremanaged manually. After receiving demand orders from a foundry, asupplier delivers toxic chemical substrates to a joint gas warehouse.Respective factory areas can acquire required toxic chemical substratesfrom the joint gas warehouse according to the required use thereof, andstock then in respective gas cabinets for further use. Conventionally,stocking and management of the toxic chemical substrates are performedmanually, and with use thereof recorded and reported by relatedpersonnel of respective factory areas. Since no computerized managementmechanism is provided, recording personnel and reporting of the use maybe inconsistent, such that the amount of respective toxic chemicalsubstrates is difficult to calculate, possibly causing failure of toxicchemical substrate management.

As described, since conventional management is performed manually, asteel cylinder storing respective toxic chemical substrates may bedispersed in respective factory areas, equipment, and gas cabinets,making effective and correct management of respective toxic chemicalsubstrates impracticable. Further, the demand of foundries is determinedbased on reported use of the toxic chemical substrates, if managementthereof is incorrect, production costs whereby may increase, along withrisk and damage to the environment and personnel.

SUMMARY

Toxic chemical substrate management systems and methods are provided. Inan exemplary embodiment of a toxic chemical substrate management systemfor use in a factory having a material management system, the toxicchemical substrate management system comprises a server, a processingunit and a database. The server is coupled to the material managementsystem to receive toxic chemical substrate information, comprisingidentification to be stored in the database. The server receives aninstruction, and the processing unit manages operations of the toxicchemical substrate according to the identification and the instruction.The operations include request, use, storage and return of the toxicchemical substrate. The database couples to the server and processingunit for storing the toxic chemical substrate information.

The server further receives the use of the toxic chemical substrate.Such use is monitored by a monitor system coupled to the storage regionof the toxic chemical substrate. The processing further registers theuse.

The toxic chemical substrate management system provides a registerinterface for registering the operating condition of the toxic chemicalsubstrate and the toxic chemical substrate information. The toxicchemical substrate management system further provides interfaces toquery the stock, use volume, operating amount, type of toxic chemicalsubstrate, and suppliers and operating region thereof.

The toxic chemical substrate management system further includes a toxicchemical substrate emergency system for recording dealing information,such as counter measures corresponding to the toxic chemical substrate.When an emergency occurs, the processing unit retrieves and displays thedealing information to assist dealing with the emergency.

The identification of the toxic chemical substrate is made according tothe container corresponding to the toxic chemical substrate.

In an exemplary embodiment of a toxic chemical substrate managementmethod, for use in a factory having a material management system, atoxic chemical substrate management system comprising a server, aprocessing unit and a database is provided. The server is coupled to thematerial management system. The material management system recognizeswhether a substrate is a toxic chemical substrate. If so, the materialmanagement system generates toxic chemical substrate informationcorresponding to the toxic chemical substrate. The toxic chemicalsubstrate information comprises identification. The server stores thetoxic chemical substrate information in the database. The processingunit manages operations of the toxic chemical substrate according to thetoxic chemical substrate information thereof.

The use of the toxic chemical substrate is further monitored via amonitor system coupled to the storage region of the toxic chemicalsubstrate. The use is further reported and registered in the toxicchemical substrate management system. If the use is not reported fromthe monitor system, related personnel are notified by email messages ormessenger calls for subsequent processing.

A toxic chemical substrate emergency system is further provided forproviding dealing information, such as counter measures corresponding tothe toxic chemical substrate. When an emergency occurs, the dealinginformation is displayed to assist dealing with the emergency.

At least one registration interface is further provided for registeringthe operating condition of the toxic chemical substrate and the toxicchemical substrate information. At least one query interface is furtherprovided for querying the stock, use volume, operating amount, type oftoxic chemical substrate, and suppliers and operating region thereof.

Toxic chemical substrate management methods may take the form of programcode embodied in a tangible media. When the program code is loaded intoand executed by a machine, the machine becomes an apparatus forpracticing the disclosed method.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Toxic chemical substrate management systems and methods will become morefully understood by referring to the following detailed description withreference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the system architecture of afactory management system according to of an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the system architecture of adatabase according to of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing initiation management for toxic chemicalsubstrates according to of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing operation registration for toxic chemicalsubstrates according to of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing query for toxic chemical substratesaccording to of an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 shows an example of a query interface.

DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the system architecture of afactory management system according to of an embodiment of the presentinvention. The factory management system 100 includes a materialmanagement system 110, a toxic chemical substrate management system 120,a database 130, a monitor system 140, a notification unit 150 and atoxic chemical substrate emergency system 160.

The material management system 110 manages normal materials of thefactory. The material management system 110 generates identification ofrespective materials, and manages respective materials accordingly. Insome embodiments of the present invention, the material managementsystem 110 can be designed to recognize toxic chemical substrates to bemonitored, and generate another identification corresponding torespective toxic chemical substrates or the container thereof. Theidentification is affixed on a container storing the toxic chemicalsubstrates. The encoding manner of the identification can be determinedaccording to the type and material number of respective toxic chemicalsubstrates, the date entering the factory, and a serial number. Forexample, the material management system 110 can generate a tag recordinga bar code for respective normal materials. If the material is a toxicchemical substrate, the material management system 110 further generatesanother identification corresponding to the toxic chemical substrate onthe tag. Further, the material management system 110 automaticallytransmits the information of the toxic chemical substrate to the toxicchemical substrate management system 120. The information comprises theidentification, volume, and supplier of the toxic chemical substrate. Insome embodiments of the present invention, for accurately managing toxicchemical substrates, a toxic chemical substrate stored in differentcontainers may have different identification.

The toxic chemical substrate management system 120 is a computerizedsystem, and manages operations of respective toxic chemical substratesaccording to the identification thereof. The operations include request,use, storage and return of respective toxic chemical substrates. Thetoxic chemical substrate management system 120 provides online access tothe system via networks. The toxic chemical substrate management system120 comprises a server (not shown), a processing unit (not shown) and adatabase 130. The server is coupled to the components of the factorymanagement system 100, such as the material management system 110 vianetworks to receive related information, such as the toxic chemicalsubstrate information, and stores the information in the database 130.Additionally, the server receives instructions for managing respectivetoxic chemical substrates via networks. The processing unit can managethe operations of respective toxic chemical substrates according to theidentification and the instructions.

The toxic chemical substrate management system 120 provides aregistration interface 122. The monitor system 140 or related personnelcan register the toxic chemical substrate information and the operatingcondition of respective toxic chemical substrates to the toxic chemicalsubstrate management system 120, and store it in the database 130 viathe registration interface 122. The toxic chemical substrate managementsystem 120 further provides at least one query interface 121 forquerying the stock, use volume, operating amount, type of respectivetoxic chemical substrates, and suppliers and operating region thereof.The query for the stock of a toxic chemical substrate traces the use ofthe toxic chemical substrate, such as operating condition and storageregion of the toxic chemical substrate, and its associated factory areaand/or department. The query for the use volume of a toxic chemicalsubstrate traces the use volume of the toxic chemical substrate forrespective factory areas and/or departments. The query for the operatingamount of a toxic chemical substrate traces the use volume of the toxicchemical substrate for respective factory areas and/or departments in aunit, such as day, month or season. The query for the type of a toxicchemical substrate queries the type of the toxic chemical substrate usedin respective factory areas and/or departments. The query for thesupplier of a toxic chemical substrate is to query the name, contactperson, phone number and operating license of the supplier providing thetoxic chemical substrate. The query for the operating region of a toxicchemical substrate queries the location information of factory areas,equipment, and gas cabinets operating the toxic chemical substrate.

The database 130 records the operating condition of respective toxicchemical substrates and toxic chemical substrates information based onthe instructions from the toxic chemical substrate management system120, and provides related information for query. FIG. 2 is a schematicdiagram illustrating the system architecture of a database according toof an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, thedatabase 130 records at least one toxic chemical substrate use record131, user information 132, identification 133, storage region 134,department 135, type of toxic chemical substrate/container 136, supplier137, and specific information 138, such as weight, pressure, andelements. It is understood that the database 130 may be in the toxicchemical substrate management system 120, or independent from the toxicchemical substrate management system 120.

The monitor system 140 couples to the storage region of respective toxicchemical substrates in respective factory areas. The monitor system 140monitors the use of respective toxic chemical substrate, such as thepressure, use volume, and average use rate, and reports and registers itto the toxic chemical substrate management system 120. If the use is notreported from the monitor system 140 for a predetermined period, thenotification unit 150 notifies related personnel by email messages ormessenger calls for subsequent processing. It is understood that thenotification may comprise the type, department, and storage region ofthe toxic chemical substrate not reported for speeding the securing thesubsequent processes. Additionally, the toxic chemical substrateemergency system 160 is further coupled with the database 130 to providedealing information, such as counter measures corresponding torespective toxic chemical substrates. When an emergency corresponding toa toxic chemical substrate occurs, the dealing information correspondingto the toxic chemical substrate is displayed to assist dealing with theemergency. In some embodiments of the present invention, since the toxicchemical substrate emergency system 160 is already existed in thefactory, the toxic chemical substrate emergency system 160 and database130 can be joined and connected. The dealing information correspondingto respective toxic chemical substrates, however, can be alsoestablished in the database 130, but is not limited thereto. The monitorsystem can be a general monitor system used in the factory.Additionally, the monitor system can be also included in the toxicchemical substrate management system 120. That is the toxic chemicalsubstrate management system 120 can be used in a factory without ageneral monitor system.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing initiation management for toxic chemicalsubstrates according to an embodiment of the present invention.

When a chemical substrate enters the factory, in step S302, the materialmanagement system 110 determines whether the chemical substrate is atoxic chemical substrate to be monitored. If not, in step S304, thechemical substrate is a normal material and managed accordingly. If so,in step S310, the material management system 110 generates toxicchemical substrate information corresponding to the toxic chemicalsubstrate or its container, and encodes the identification according tothe type and material number of the toxic chemical substrate, and thedate entering the factory, such that the toxic chemical substrate or itscontainer has a unique identification. Then, in step S320, the materialmanagement system 110 transmits the information to the toxic chemicalsubstrate management system 120. In step S330, the toxic chemicalsubstrate management system 120 registers the information and managesoperations of the toxic chemical substrate according to theidentification thereof.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing operation registration for toxic chemicalsubstrates according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, in step S420, the registration interface is displayed. It isunderstood that since the operations may include request, use, storageand return of respective toxic chemical substrates, the registrationinterface may comprise several sub-interfaces for different operationregistrations. In steps S430 and S440, the operating condition ofrespective toxic chemical substrates is received, and stored in thedatabase 130. The registration (S420˜S440) can be continuously performeduntil the system is suspended. It is understood that the monitor system140 can automatically monitor and register the use of respective toxicchemical substrates, such as the pressure, use volume, and average userate. If the monitor system 140 cannot automatically perform theregistration, the registration can be performed by related personnel viathe registration interface.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing query for toxic chemical substratesaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, in step S520, a query interface 121 is displayed. Since variousqueries are provided in the system, the query interface 121 may displayseveral query items, as shown in FIG. 6. The query interface 121 in FIG.6 comprises several query manners (items): query for stock 601, queryfor use volume 602, query for operating amount 603, query for type 604,query for supplier 606, and query for operating region 607. Respectivequeries may have a corresponding input interface. Additionally, thequery interface 121 provides a query field 605 for receiving querykeywords and conditions in text form. Then, in step S530, query itemsand conditions, such as user information, identification, storageregion, department, type of toxic chemical substrate, supplier, andtoxic chemical substrate information are received via the queryinterface 121. In step S540, a query is performed according to the queryitems and conditions, and in step S550, the query result is displayed.

It is understood that the toxic chemical substrate management system 120can set a minimum volume for respective toxic chemical substrates orcorresponding containers, and notify related personnel about the toxicchemical substrates or containers under the minimum volume forrequesting return to the gas warehouse. Additionally, the returned toxicchemical substrates or containers can be listed for disposal.

Toxic chemical substrate management methods, or certain aspects orportions thereof, may take the form of program code (i.e., executableinstructions) embodied in tangible media, such as products, floppydiskettes, CD-ROMS, hard drives, or any other machine-readable storagemedium, wherein, when the program code is loaded into and executed by amachine, such as a computer, the machine thereby becomes an apparatusfor practicing the methods. The methods may also be embodied in the formof program code transmitted over some transmission medium, such aselectrical wiring or cabling, through fiber optics, or via any otherform of transmission, wherein, when the program code is received andloaded into and executed by a machine, such as a computer, the machinebecomes an apparatus for practicing the disclosed methods. Whenimplemented on a general-purpose processor, the program code combineswith the processor to provide a unique apparatus that operatesanalogously to application specific logic circuits.

While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms ofpreferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is notlimited thereto. Those who are skilled in this technology can still makevarious alterations and modifications without departing from the scopeand spirit of this invention. Therefore, the scope of the presentinvention shall be defined and protected by the following claims andtheir equivalents.

1. A toxic chemical substrate management system, for use in a factorycomprising a material management system, comprising: a server receivingat least one instruction, coupled to the material management system toreceive toxic chemical substrate information of a toxic chemicalsubstrate, wherein the toxic chemical substrate information comprisesidentification; a processing unit managing operations of the toxicchemical substrate according to the identification and the instruction,wherein the operations comprise request, use and storage of the toxicchemical substrate; and a database coupled to the server and theprocessing unit, storing the toxic chemical substrate information. 2.The system of claim 1 wherein the server further receives use of thetoxic chemical substrate, and the processing unit further registers theuse in the database, wherein the use is monitored by a monitor systemcoupled to a storage region of the toxic chemical substrate.
 3. Thesystem of claim 1 further comprising: a registration interface; and aquery interface.
 4. The system of claim 3 wherein the query interfacefurther comprises: a first interface receiving a query for stock of thetoxic chemical substrate; a second interface receiving a query for usevolume of the toxic chemical substrate; a third interface receiving aquery for operating amount of the toxic chemical substrate; a fourthinterface receiving a query for type of the toxic chemical substrate; afifth interface receiving a query for supplier of the toxic chemicalsubstrate; and a sixth interface receiving a query for operating regionof the toxic chemical substrate.
 5. The system of claim 1 furthercomprising a toxic chemical substrate emergency system recording dealinginformation corresponding to the toxic chemical substrate, in which whenan emergency occurs, the processing unit retrieves and displays thedealing information to assist dealing with the emergency.
 6. The systemof claim 1 wherein the operations further comprise return of the toxicchemical substrate, such that when the toxic chemical substrate is undera predetermined volume, the identification is discarded.
 7. The systemof claim 1 wherein the identification of the toxic chemical substrate isdetermined according to a container corresponding to the toxic chemicalsubstrate.
 8. A toxic chemical substrate management method, for use in afactory having a material management system, comprising: providing atoxic chemical substrate management system comprising a server, aprocessing unit and a database; coupling the server to the materialmanagement system; determining whether a substrate is a toxic chemicalsubstrate by the material management system, and if so, generating toxicchemical substrate information corresponding to the toxic chemicalsubstrate, wherein the toxic chemical substrate information comprisesidentification; storing the toxic chemical substrate information in thedatabase via the server; and managing operations of the toxic chemicalsubstrate according to the toxic chemical substrate information thereofby the processing unit.
 9. The method of claim 8 further comprisingmonitoring and reporting use of the toxic chemical substrate to thetoxic chemical substrate management system via a monitor system coupledto a storage region of the toxic chemical substrate.
 10. The method ofclaim 9 further comprising: receiving a query for stock of the toxicchemical substrate via a first interface; receiving a query for usevolume of the toxic chemical substrate via a second interface; receivinga query for operating amount of the toxic chemical substrate via a thirdinterface; receiving a query for type of the toxic chemical substratevia a fourth interface; receiving a query for supplier of the toxicchemical substrate via a fifth interface; and receiving a query foroperating region of the toxic chemical substrate via a sixth interface.11. The method of claim 10 further comprising receiving a query foroperating condition and storage region of the toxic chemical substrateand associated factory area via the first interface.
 12. The method ofclaim 8 further comprising linking a toxic chemical substrate emergencysystem recording dealing information corresponding to the toxic chemicalsubstrate to the database, in which when an emergency occurs, theprocessing unit retrieves and displays the dealing information to assistdealing with the emergency.
 13. The method of claim 8 wherein theprocessing unit further manages the return of the toxic chemicalsubstrate, such that when the toxic chemical substrate is under apredetermined volume, the identification is discarded.
 14. The method ofclaim 1 further comprising affixing the identification on a container ofthe toxic chemical substrate after the substrate is determined to be thetoxic chemical substrate.
 15. A set of application program interfacesembodied on a computer-readable medium for execution on a computer inconjunction with an application program that performs toxic chemicalsubstrate management, comprising: a registration interface receiving anoperating condition of a toxic chemical substrate, and registering theoperating condition; and a query interface, comprising: a firstinterface receiving a query for stock of the toxic chemical substrate; asecond interface receiving a query for use volume of the toxic chemicalsubstrate; and a third interface receiving a query for operating amountof the toxic chemical substrate.
 16. The set of application programinterfaces of claim 15 wherein the query interface further comprises: afourth interface receiving a query for type of the toxic chemicalsubstrate; a fifth interface receiving a query for supplier of the toxicchemical substrate; and a sixth interface receiving a query foroperating region of the toxic chemical substrate.
 17. A factorymanagement systems, comprising: a material management system determiningat least one toxic chemical substrate, and generating toxic chemicalsubstrate information corresponding to the toxic chemical substrate,wherein the toxic chemical substrate information comprisesidentification; and a toxic chemical substrate management system coupledto the material management system, managing operations of the toxicchemical substrate according to the identification, wherein theoperations comprise request, use and storage of the toxic chemicalsubstrate.
 18. The system of claim 17 further comprising a monitorsystem coupled to a storage region of the toxic chemical substrate,monitoring and reporting use of the toxic chemical substrate to thetoxic chemical substrate management system.
 19. The system of claim 17wherein the toxic chemical substrate management system furthercomprises: a registration interface receiving an operating condition ofthe toxic chemical substrate, and registering the operating condition;and a query interface receiving a query for stock of the toxic chemicalsubstrate, a query for use volume of the toxic chemical substrate, aquery for operating amount of the toxic chemical substrate, a query fortype of the toxic chemical substrate, a query for supplier of the toxicchemical substrate, and a query for operating region of the toxicchemical substrate.
 20. The system of claim 17 further comprising atoxic chemical substrate emergency system for recording dealinginformation corresponding to the toxic chemical substrate.